Synthesis of nanodiamond-SnO₂ core-shell nanocomposite and its application for nitrite electrooxidation

Abstract

Nanodiamond-supported crystalline SnO₂ nanoparticles (SnO₂/ND) were successfully synthesized from ND-dispersed SnCl₄·5H₂O aqueous solution via the isothermal hydrolyzing method at 60 °C. The XRD and TEM results showed that SnO₂ layer was composed of rutile nanocrystals rather than amorphous clusters and the different hydrolyzing parameters did not change the phase structure, but the concentration and the reaction time affected the morphology of SnO₂ coating. The nitrite electrooxidation experiments indicated that the SnO₂ prepared with low concentration and short reaction time had ellipsoid shape and small particle size, leading to better electrocatalytic activity. And the UV irradiation could reduce the resistance of the electrode, accelerate the electron transfer capacity and increase the catalytic activity of nitrite oxidation.

Keywords:

• Nanodiamond
• SnO₂ nanoparticles
• isothermal hydrolyzing
• electrocatalytic activity

Acknowledgements

The authors appreciate financial supports from National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 51502098), Cultivation Plan of Outstanding youth researcher of Fujian Province and Promotion Program for Young and Middle-aged Teacher in Science and Technology Research of Huaqiao University (ZQN-PY305).